Terrick ran his fingers through his hair. His nostrils flared with his deep breaths. “I do understand, Ana, but until the wild animal has been captured or killed, I don’t dare have people traveling late at night to their homes. Please understand and be patient.”
“Do you promise that I can have a ball after the beast has been caught?”
He nodded. “I promise.”
Anastasia danced around happily. Bella chuckled over the girl’s response. Bella couldn’t remember acting this young, even when she was seventeen. Her mother’s death had made Bella mature faster than some of her friends.
“Well, I think playtime is over now.” Bella hooked her arm around Anastasia’s. “Let’s get back to our lessons.”
She couldn’t help but look back at Terrick before leaving the music room, and she was happy to see he watched her with a lazy smile on his face. It surprised her how giddy she felt – almost as giddy as Anastasia was at this moment. Another thing startled her was that she’d just received her first kiss. Yet, something inside her told her that this was not her first kiss at all. Could that be why she had joined right in and loved it?
But the main question in her mind was wondering if Terrick was really the man she’d loved and forgotten about. He didn’t seem like a stranger to her anymore, and she enjoyed his company. If only her memory would open soon. If Terrick was really the unknown man in her heart, she wanted to know now.
TERRICK ASSISTED BELLA into the carriage and struggled to climb in after her. He hated his weakness and wished he looked more like a man in her eyes. He was just grateful that she didn’t comment on it or look at him with pity in her eyes. That was one thing he couldn’t tolerate.
Once the driver closed the door and climbed up to his seat, the vehicle began its journey toward Bella’s house, with her horse tied to the back.
Since the kiss earlier this afternoon, he hadn’t seen her that much, and when they did look at each other, her gaze didn’t stay on him long. But, her cheeks reddened, and she wore a grin. That told him what he needed to know. She liked the kiss, maybe almost as he did.
How could he not get excited about the prospect of her memory finally opening? However, he couldn’t rush it. He needed to have patience.
“Did you read any more of that book I gave you?” she asked, breaking the silence between them.
He leaned forward toward her and pulled the book out of his jacket pocket, handing it to her. “I did, and I think I might have figured it out.”
“You figured out the book?” Her voice lifted as she rested the book on her lap.
“As you know, my family has a large library, and some of those symbols I’ve seen before. I spent most of the afternoon going through the books to find the one I remember seeing. I finally found it, but...” He paused, trying to put his thoughts into the right words to not startle Bella.
“But what?”
“Well, to be honest, I was a little shocked that your grandmother gave your mother a book about witchcraft.”
She sucked in a quick breath, and her eyes widened. “Witchcraft?” she whispered as though others might be able to hear them. “Are you certain?”
He shrugged. “That’s what the symbols indicate.”
“Oh, no.” She shook her head and sat up straighter, but her hands wrung on her lap. “There must be some mistake. My mother would never dabble in witchcraft. For that matter, my father wouldn’t have allowed her to try it, even if she’d wanted to.”
She was in shock, and Terrick must comfort her, so hopefully, she’d allow it. He shifted to her seat and sat next to her, touching her trembling hands. “Bella, you are probably correct. After all, you said you’d never seen that book before. Maybe her mother gave it to her, but your mother chose not to use it.”
Nodding, she met his gaze. Tears were gathering in her eyes, and it nearly shattered him to see her so distraught. “Bella, I’m sorry. I was wrong to tell you.” He slid an arm around her, pulling her against him. Her body was stiff as she pressed her cheek against his chest.
“No, I’m glad you told me.” Her voice shook.
“Shhh...” He stroked her hair. “Take deep breaths and try to calm down. You’re trembling.”
“I’m sorry.”
A sob released from her throat, and she pressed her face harder against his chest. Hearing her cry this way reminded him of the day they had to say their goodbyes. Even though they knew they’d be back together in seven years, it wasn't easy to accept, nonetheless. Her cries were just as ragged then, and his heart was breaking the same way as now.
He kissed the top of her head, holding her closer as he rubbed her back and shoulders. “Bella, if you don’t think your mother could do such a thing, then she didn’t. I jumped to conclusions, and I’m sorry.”
Her breathing shook as she inhaled and pulled back to gaze into his eyes. “But, I think she did do that.”
He wasn’t sure he heard her right. She couldn’t have possibly said what he thought. “No, I don’t think—”
“Terrick, as I think about over the years of my life, especially when my father traveled so often, there were things my mother couldn’t explain. We had food on the table, and yet, she didn’t work. She always told me the neighbors helped us out.” She wiped her eyes. “One time, our horse was sick, and I feared he was going to die, but miraculously, the next day, the horse was fine. In fact, it had never run so fast until after that day.”
Suddenly, she stopped, and her eyes widened. “Oh, Terrick, what if...” She licked her lips. “What if my mother is the reason I can’t remember? What if she
